Nine days before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, on July 26, a new round of pressure. The four unions of the Aéroports de Paris (ADP) group — CGT, CFDT, Unsa, FO — are calling for a strike this Wednesday, July 17, at Roissy Charles-de-Gaulle and Orly. The organizations are demanding a “fair and uniform bonus” for all employees mobilized during the period of the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games. “For several weeks, management has remained deaf to our demands,” says Daniel Bertone, general secretary of the CGT ADP. “We don’t understand why everyone is not entitled to the same thing.”
ADP, the gateway to the world during the Olympic Games, initially agreed to award 70 euros per shift to “volunteers” – and 100 euros for “critical” days. These employees usually in offices (mainly administrative staff) will be on the ground to welcome thousands of tourists. Faced with the discontent of other employees and those who work in airports, for whom no bonus was planned, management unilaterally granted a bonus of 1,000 euros to the so-called “operational” agents mobilized.
“All those with staggered hours. But that only concerns 1,800 people out of about 6,000,” notes Daniel Bertone. “If she doesn’t react, management will assume the potential repercussions.”
“No worries” from management
They are expected to be weak, if not non-existent, this Wednesday, since the “operational staff” needed for the smooth running of flights are not expected to mobilize. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) is therefore not expected to ask companies to reduce their flight plans. On May 19, the strike decided by the same four unions had not led to any cancellations or delays. Daniel Bertone himself has “rather few illusions” about the outcome of the social movement, while management says it is “confident” and has “no concerns” about the Olympic Games.
There is no particular alert among the platform’s many subcontractors, nor among air traffic controllers. The profession, which is adept at applying pressure and capable of bringing traffic to a standstill, committed itself at the end of last year not to lead any industrial action during the entire Olympic period. In short, in airports and in the sky, the horizon is clear.